Cell phone usage has become a key part of Egyptian society, with an estimated 45 million mobile phone subscribers in Egypt and almost one million new subscribers added every month.  World Education, Inc. (WEI), an international leader in the design and use of non-formal education with eight years of experience in adult literacy, launched a small mobile phone pilot program that targets adult literacy in Cairo.  This 2007 pilot has shown that the use of mobile phones is a strong motivator for  women who sign up, continue attending classes, and remain in class long enough to pass the final literacy exam.  By mastering simple mobile phone skills such as using contact lists, text messaging, and calculations, learners do not need to rely on spouses, relatives, or friends to phone for them.  Building upon this successful pilot, WEI proposes the “Message Sent” project to use mobile phones to accelerate adult literacy learning.  This project will both develop tested mobile phone curricula for active learning of Arabic language and arithmetic in literacy classes and train adult literacy teachers in its use.  The project is designed with four main components: 1) learning how to use a cell phone; 2) learning the Arabic alphabet; 3) gaining a functional 300 word vocabulary; and 4) acquiring numeracy skills.   In the classroom, students will first learn how to use and read a cell phone, with respect to saving numbers, placing calls and accessing text messages.  They will then be introduced to the Arabic alphabet and numbers through the use of the keypad and tested curricula.  This learning will be built upon with the introduction of 300 vocabulary words relevant to cell phones, including text messaging, saving numbers and using mobile applications, like the calculator.  Finally, dialing numbers and calculator usage will be incorporated as important numeracy learning tools. The repetitive nature of cell phone use and very functional application of cell phone features can increase and ensure literacy retention.  Moreover, the high desire for cell phones as a cultural status symbol increases the drive for students to enroll in courses and retain literacy skills.  The “Message Sent” project is designed both to provide basic cell phone literacy and act as a launching pad for larger literacy efforts in Egypt, particularly among the illiterate female populations.  In addition: With funding from USAID and the Ford Foundation, World Education, Inc. (WEI) has been engaged in nonformal education and adult literacy in Egypt since 1999.  Currently WEI is responsible for literacy, organizational capacity building and community mobilization activities for the Egypt Education Reform Project (ERP) and the Girls' Improved Learning Outcomes (GILO).  ERP, a five-year, USAID-funded program, addresses decentralization through an integrated approach that combines community mobilization, nonformal education, including life skills and literacy training, school construction, teacher training, and girls' scholarships, while ensuring effective leadership and participation of the Egyptian government.  GILO is a three-year project that aims to increase the educational enrollment and achievement of girls in basic, primary and preparatory schools in Egypt. In addition to these long-term projects, WEI/Egypt has undertaken several education initiatives.  In 2007 World Education launched a pilot in Marg of Cairo, which explored the effects of using cell phones in literacy classes in terms of retention with reading, writing and arithmetic.  The pilot has shown that the utility of the phone allows learners to retain literacy skills through texting and reading messages and calculating sums in the marketplace.  Literacy teachers in poor urban areas have welcomed the opportunity to experiment with curriculum incorporating mobile phone use along with health messages and other practical topics.  The WEI/Egypt staff has continued research in this area, traveling to and presenting at international conferences around mobile phones and literacy efforts, and the staff intends to continue exploring this exciting literacy tool.   

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